Sapphic

See also: sapphic

English

WOTD – 11 January 2010

Alternative forms

Sapphick (obsolete)

Etymology

Sappho (Ancient Greek Σαπφώ (Sapphṓ)) +‎ -ic, whence Latin Sapphicus. Sense related to sexuality alludes to Sappho's poetry discussing love between women (see also lesbian).

Pronunciation

(UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈsæf.ɪk/
Rhymes: -æfɪk
Audio (Southern England): (file)

Adjective

Sapphic (not comparable)

Relating to the Greek poetess Sappho from Lesbos or her poetry.
(poetry) Of a certain kind of verse reputed to have been invented by Sappho, consisting of five metrical feet, of which the first, fourth, and fifth are trochees, the second is a spondee, and the third a dactyl.
Alternative letter-case form of sapphic: relating to sexual or romantic intimacy between women.

Related terms

Translations

relating to the Greek poetess Sappho or her poetry

Finnish: sapfolainen
French: saphique (fr)
Hungarian: szapphói
Irish: Safach
Spanish: sáfico, lesbio

sapphic — see sapphic

Noun

Sapphic (plural Sapphics)

(poetry) A Sapphic verse.
- 1824, Vicesimus Knox, The Works of Vicesimus Knox, D.D.: With a Biographical Preface:
  His Sapphics, on the story of Bacchus and Ariadne, are easy, elegant, and poetical.
- 1887, Horace, Horace: The Odes, Carmen Seculare, and Epodes, page 174:
  The first line (which goes by the name of Aristophanes) is a Sapphic without the initial trochees.
- 1888, Maurice Thompson, A Fortnight of Folly, page 41:
  "A real Sapphic," said Crane, dropping into a poetical tone, as an elocutionist does when he is hungry for an opportunity to recite a favorite sketch.
A person who is sapphic.
- 2004, Simon Callow, Being an Actor, page 9:
  'Very good,” he said, 'although I must confess that the older I get, the less I am able to enjoy the company of women – except of course our own dear Enid who is so notorious a Sapphic as to be virtually hors concours.
- 2011 March 17, Annalisa Millo, “A great year for lesbians”, in QSaltake, number 176, page 33:
  There are many of us (yes, even in Utah) who are more style-conscious, socially involved and culturally aware Sapphics than the common opinion dictates.
- 2019 Summer, Gretal M. (19), review of Her Royal Highness, by Rachel Hawkins in The Chuckanut Reader, page 71:
  Are you a fan of hate-to-love? Roommates? Royalty romances? Geology puns? Sapphics? Her Royal Highness has all of this and more. After Millie discovers her best friend turned maybe girlfriend kissing someone else, she decides to flee […]
- For more quotations using this term, see Citations:Sapphic.

Synonyms

see also Thesaurus:gay woman